Heater



E. PAYNE Dec. 6, 1955 HEATER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 8, 1953 Esfil/ Payne INVENTOR.

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E. PAYNE Dec. 6, 1955 HEATER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 8, 1953 Esf/l/ Pay/Fe INVENTOR.

BY WW /15m United States HEATER Estill Payne, Arcata, Calif. Application January 8, 1953, Serial No. 330,261 3 Claims. (31. 126-421) This invention relates to heating and ventilating systems and more particularly to systems for use with a fireplace.

An important object is to obviate smoking of fireplaces by employing an outside air intake in the room containing the fireplace.

Another object is to provide a heating and ventilating system for use with a fireplace and which will utilize a maximum of the heat energy generated in a fireplace.

A further object is the provision of a heating system employing an air preheater disposed on the hearth of a fireplace.

A still further object is to provide both a recirculatory and a fresh air intake in a heating system.

Another object is to provide a heating and ventilating system for fireplaces which has a maximum area thereof exposed to the heat generated by a fireplace. I

Still another object lies in the provision of an air preheater which serves also as a fireplace grate.

These together with other objects and advantages which will be come subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure 1 is a vertical section of a room and underlying structure showing the front of a fireplace utilizing the improved heating system;

Figure 2 is a vertical section taken along line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a horizontal section taken along line 3--3 of Figure l; and,

Figure 4 is another horizontal section taken along line 4-4 of Figure 1.

Referring now more particularly to Figures 1 and 2, reference numeral designates the floor of a room having a wall 12 and a chimney flue 14. A fireplace faces into the room and is provided with an apron 16, a hearth 18, and an ash pit opening 20 in the hearth. Opening 26 communicates with ash pit 22 in the lower portion 24 of the chimney which has a door 26 for the purpose of removing ashes from the pit. This portion of the chimney is usually located within the basement 25, the floor of which is indicated at 27. The fireplace proper has an opening 28 into the room and a front wall 30 provided with a mantle 32.

The foregoing structure describes one type of conventional fireplace and a heating and ventilating system for use with this and other fireplaces will now be described.

Disposed within the ash pit opening 20 is an air inlet duct 34 which terminates in a preheater indicated generally as 36. Specifically, the preheater comprises a forward manifold 38 and a rear manifold 40. Tubular passages 42 connect the two manifolds and the preheater constitutes a grate upon which a fire can be built. It will be seen that legs 44 space the preheater from the hearth so that ashes may be removed therefrom. For convenient ash disposal, a removable cover 46 in register 2,725,874 Patented Dec. .6, 1955 2 with ash pit opening 20 is provided on the upper surface of the preheater. V

An upwardly extending outlet duct or passage 48 communicates at its lower end with rear manifold 40 and has an upper horizontally disposed portion 50 terminating in divergent chamber 52. The mouth of this chamber opens into the room to be heated and is covered by a filter screen 54. Also communicating with the rear manifold are a pair of spaced recirculatory inlet ducts 56 extending from opposite ends of rear manifold 40. These ducts open on the front wall 30 and are covered by filter screens 58.

When a fire is built in a conventional fireplace, there is a marked tendency for smoke to enter the room due to the fact that the fire and its updraft creates a partial vacuum within the room. To obviate this effect, the above described system may be used. The ash pit door may be propped practically open or provided with a suitable opening to allow external air from the basement to flow upwardly through intake duct 34, into preheater 36 and into the room through outlets 52. Therefore, vacuum within the room is obviated. To supply completely fresh air to the system, a pair of outside air passages 69 are connected to manifold 38. At this point, it may be well to state that either or both of the intake passages 34 and 60 may be provided. In fireplaces of the type shown, it will be preferred to utilize the intake duct 34 in addition to outside air ducts 60, but in many instances, the design of the fireplace may not include the ash pit assembly shown, in which case, only the installation of ducts 60 may be advisable. In all cases, it will be desired to utilize outside air ducts as the use of humid fresh air is an obvious advantage.

By disposing the preheater in direct contact with the fire and placing the outlet portions 48 and St) in contact with the hot flue gases, the system affords a maximum of eificiency and a minimum of heat loss up the chimney. Circulation of the air is efiected by convection and the provision of the recirculatory inlets 56 insures a desirable circulation of heated air Within the room, in addition to the heat radiated by the fire.

From the foregoing, the construction and operation of the device will be readily understood and further explanation is believed to be unnecessary. However, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. An air preheater attachment for fireplaces comprising, a first manifold adapted to be placed at the rear of a fireplace, a second manifold, tubular members secured at opposite ends to said first and second manifolds rigidly interconnecting and communicating the same, a central tubular member connected at one end to said second manifold and provided at its other end with a depending air inlet duct for reception within the ash pit opening of a fireplace, and a vertical outlet duct connected at its lower end to said first manifold and at its upper end with a horizontal outlet duct for educting preheated air into a room.

2. An air preheater attachment for fireplaces comprising, a first manifold adapted to be placed at the rear of a fireplace, a second manifold, tubular members secured at opposite ends to said first and second manifolds rigidly interconnecting and communicating the same, a central tubular member connected at one end to said second manifold and provided at its other end with a depending air inlet duct for reception within the ash pit opening of a fireplace, a vertical outlet duct connected at its lower 3 end to said first manifold and at its upper end with a horizontal outlet duct for educting preheated air into a room, and a. recirculatory inlet duct extending from adjacent said second manifold to a point of connection with said first manifold.

3. An air preheater attachment for fireplaces comprising, front and rear tubular manifolds, a plurality of tubular grate bars interconnecting said manifolds, a central grate bar connected at one end to said front manifold and being provided at its opposite end with a depending air inlet duct adapted for reception within the ash pit opening of a fireplace, a pair of recirculatory air inlet ducts, said recirculatory inlet ducts mutually diverging from opposite ends of said rear manifold and being disextending first upwardly from said rear manifold and then horizontally in spaced parallel relation to said grate bars.

References Cited in the file of this patent posed in the plane of said grate bars, and an outlet duct 15 2,161,723

UNITED STATES PATENTS Tatem Nov. 27, 1894 Greene Jan. 18, 1921 Hallberg June 1, 1926 Royse Mar. 8, 1927 Williamson Nov. 22, 1927 Cesa June 24, 1930 Winnett Nov. 1, 1938 Rutland June 6, 1939 

